How can a keyword has very low search volume (<10) and high competition?
-
Sometimes I notice in Google keyword tool that a keyword has very low search volume (<10) and high competition? Why would anyone go for a keyword with very less search volume ??
(note: If Checked in Google keywords tool with Exact match)
Though I understand this tool doesn't always have exact data but still any explanation to that question?
-
Because you only pay if they click. There's no reason not to target anything you think could convert.
-
Yeah that's very true that for some industries search volume might be low but margin is high!
-
That's a good point you mentioned there! Though I wonder why would someone pay money and go for low volume keywords esp, not necessarily low volume keywords has high conversion rate!
-
I'm surprised no one has mentioned the obvious: The Google AdWords keyword tool assesses competition based on AdWords, not based on SEO. A high competition keyword is a keyword that many advertisers are bidding on. It's common practice in AdWords to bid on low-volume high-conversion keywords. Those can actually get you the best ROI sometimes.
-
Hi Vikas, I think there are a number of factors. I would agree with Explainafide about the main one - lots of webmasters don't even consider SEO or keywords. Also as Christopher says, the potential ROI could make a low volume, highly competitive keyword worth optimising for. And as you say, the keyword tool isn't totally accurate and webmasters may be seeing different results from what Google estimates.
Unless the keyword is highly valuable with a good conversion rate,I wouldn't put too much effort into optimising for low volume, highly competitive keywords. However the worth of that keyword is different to different sites.
-
There are many website owners that know little to no SEO and keywords aren't even a consideration.
I work with a lot of artists and this is true in many cases. The competition for sculptor City XYZ is huge but the volume is relatively minor. It just means there's A LOT of sculptors in that city.
-
It is my understanding the search volume and keyword competition are independent. For example, many people purchase socks, but the potential for profit is relatively low which limits the pricing competition. In contrast, awards for medical malpractice could be quite high, but the search volume for a rare medical procedure could be very low.
Best,
Christopher -
Your keyword selection should depend on the conversion probability related to the keyword combined with the search volume. You dont want to put too much SEO effort on a keyword with very little search volume however as you mentioned correctly, Google's keyword tool info is not always accurate.
Low volume search terms might be very valuable for some industries as even one sale resulting from those keywords can mean a lot of revenue for the client.
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Keyword inside keyword
Hi, I'm a newb and I'm trying to wrap my head around how this keyword thing works. Let's say I find these KWs as part of my research: Acupuncture Acupuncture Clinics Acupuncture Clinics in Gainesville Acupuncture Clinics in Gainesville Florida Does optimizing for Acupuncture Clinics in Gainesville Florida optimize me for all the other terms as well? And furthermore, might I appear for searches like these too: Acupuncture Florida Acupuncture Gainesviile Acupuncture clinics Fl Thanks a bunch!
Keyword Research | | Graphbyte0 -
How many keywords is too many?
Hi there Moz'ers, I run a mens fashion brand called THE AFFAIR, where we craft premium T-shirts and Art Prints inspired by your favourite books. So my problem is that I have no idea what to try to rank for keyword wise because every product is inspired by a different book and author. Whilst I could go very wide and try for terms such as "graphic t-shirts" or "printed t-shirts" they are a) super competitive and b) bear no relation to the primary selling point being the literature inspired basis of what we do. But on the flip side, there's just not that many people searching for "Jules Verne t-shirts" or even "Adventure t-shirts" to go a little wider at the genre level. Basically I'm confused at a conceptual level about how to best select my keywords and desperately need some help before running down the wrong path! For what it's worth the site is built on WP (using WooCommerce) and I have installed Yoast and begin playing around with it... But anyway it's the larger strategy that has me stumped at the moment and I really don't know where to begin. Thanks for your time and all comments very much appreciated. FREE T-SHIRT to whoever has the best solution 🙂 cheers
Keyword Research | | theaffair
Zoltan0 -
Is there a Meta tag or Keyword Generator tool that I can use on SEMOZ ?
I need to identify a tool within SEMOZ that can automatically generate Keywords and Meta tags.
Keyword Research | | sherohass0 -
Google keyword tool
Hey anyone noticed Google's keyword tool seems to be returning weird data for search volume compared to just a few days ago? "iron fist clothing" exact match was returning around 1,000 local monthly searches and a monthly trend of approximately the same over the past year. As of yesterday it has zero searches for exact match and even the monthly trends have all been set to zero for every month going back a year Now I suppose this could happen in theory but the fact that the trend is showing up as zero for each month over the last year makes me think this could be a bug. I've also noticed this for one of my keywords on my SEO site, again suddenly gone to zero searches and monthly trends going back a year. However a quick check on webmaster tools shows the impressions going back a few months at the average of 1,300 that the old trend suggested it should be. Anyone else noticed this?
Keyword Research | | barabis770 -
How do you differentiate the Keywords for marketing??
I have generated more than 1000 quality keywords For my Foundation, now i am very much worried how would some on separate the keywords in to conversion keywords, Targeted Keywords, High priority Keywords. how would you justify that the keyword which are short listed will be the best keywords for website promotions??
Keyword Research | | AkshayaPatra0 -
Search volumes broken down by region
Hi, Just wondering if anyone knows if there is a keyword research tool available that breaks down search volumes by region. For example, how many searches there are in London/South East for the keyword "cars". All the tools I have seen only go down to country level. Are there any that go down to region/city level? Thanks for your help. Mik
Keyword Research | | increation0 -
Two spaces between keywords?
For seo purposes Looking to register a new double (keyword based) domain were popular domains are not available. Keyword difficulty rated for exact keyword is 49% For example, www.(name1)(name2).com (is not available) www.(name1)-(name2).com (is not available) (single space between keywords) What is the next best alternative? www.(name1)--(name2).com (Double space between keywords) www.(name2)(name1).com (reverse keywords with no spaces) www.(name1)s(name2)s.com (adding the letter s to the end of both keywords) or is there a better alternative)
Keyword Research | | peterds0 -
Does keyword arrangement matter?
If I choose: Blue Wide Widgets vs. Wide Blue Widgets vs. Widgets Wide Blue Are these considered 3 different keywords that show up on 3 different SERPs?
Keyword Research | | 13375auc30